Trophy
by commercial-break
Summary: Katara, an Inuit princess, has had an arranged marriage since birth; however, when her fiancé is killed in battle, she is taken as the trophy by Prince Zuko of the Sozin Kingdom.
1. Synopsis

Synopsis

The Inuit are of the peaceful kind; they stay to themselves. However, in 1500 B.C. the newest ruler of China, Lord Sozin, had taken the liberty of forcing all surrounding civilizations into an unwarranted battle. Most people say Lord Sozin underwent a spiritual possession of a past ancestor who was insane with power, and at that time it was believable.

Now, in the year 1000 B.C. when the battles have ended, but the tension still remains, the thought of Lord Sozin undergoing a possession is a funny thought. Lord Lu Ten, the great-grandson of Sozin, now rules over the Sozin Kingdom with his wife Lady June. Lu Ten's uncle, Prince Ozai, has tutored his children into believing that the rest of the world is useless, so when Lu Ten invites his cousin, Prince Zuko, on a hunt, the adventure soon turns into an all-out battle between the few nobles of the Sozin Kingdom and the Inuit people.

With Lu Ten soon injured into unconsciousness, Zuko is left in charge. The battle only lasts for a few days, but the Sozin Kingdom quickly comes to their victory, and what better prize than the beautiful and newly single Princess Katara.

* * *

The Inuit tribe was divided into two sister tribes, the Eastern Inuit Tribe and the Western Inuit Tribe, until 1250 B.C. They had quickly discovered that fighting as two separate nations during the Sozin War was not doing any good. They decided to follow the steps of the Indian Nomads _ ******_ and combine their forces. The Nomads, however, had not combined to fight, they had combined to flee and left the region of the Sozin Kingdom; this automatically gave the Sozin Kingdom reign over the Nomadic Territory.

The combining of the sister tribes had led to conflict between the two ruling households. Chief Nanuk of the Western Inuit Tribe and Tikaani of the Eastern Inuit Tribe decided that battle between the two of them would be the only way to resolve the issue. The battle was not to death, as this was not an issue any man with a family should die for, except the first man to stay on the ground for longer than ten seconds would lose. Nanuk won the battle, resulting in becoming the first chief of the Inuit Tribe. Nanuk had a son, Hakoda, who had both a son, Sokka, and a daughter, Katara.

Sokka, Nanuk's grandson, was to be married to Tatkret, Tikaani's second granddaughter before she fell ill and soon died of pneumonia. Yue, Tikaani's first great-granddaughter and Tatkret's niece, was then offered as Sokka's bride-to-be. Taken in by her beauty and uniquely blue eyes, Sokka agreed to marry the girl when she turned sixteen, which would make him eighteen. Katara, Nanuk's granddaughter, was to be married to Hahn, a man greatly respected within the tribe as a great warrior and hunter.

This all changed the day Prince Zuko attacked the Tribe.

* * *

 _ ******_ A/N: Indian Nomads refers to the country of India, not Native Americans.


	2. Chapter 1: Katara

Chapter 1: Katara

"When I was younger, my mother would tell me stories of ruthless rulers and wars. She said that the fight was still alive, but the youngest ruler in centuries was turning things around. He wanted peace among the people, trade to come back to life, everything to go back to normal. He was Lord Iroh of the Sozin Kingdom, the grandson of Lord Sozin himself.

"When I turned thirteen, I became too old for storytelling. Instead, I worked with the women and received and gave gossip. I remember the most raved about thing that year: Lord Iroh is dead. Most people said he died of heart failure, but everyone agreed he was far too young for that. There was speculation that he was poisoned, but that was never proven.

"Anyway, the question then became, who would take over? Being so far away from the Sozin Kingdom, it was hard to know many things; all we had known was that Azulon, Sozin's son, had two sons of his own: Lord Iroh and Prince Ozai. What we didn't know was that Lord Iroh had a son, Prince Lu Ten–"

"Katara!"

Looking up from the children, I stared at a frantic looking Yue. She was sweating, her clothes misplaced; she had obviously just come running from her shared home with Sokka. Yue was huffing and puffing, like the polar bear and 3 little seals story, and seemed to be at a loss for words.

"Yue? What's wrong?"

"Didn't you hear the calls?"

"What calls?" I stood from my wooden stool and stepped around the curious children to have a more private conversation with Yue.

"The men who were hunting, some of them came back, said that they were attacked by some noble-looking men from the Kingdom. They want all the children sent home and all maidens to tend to the wounded."

Yue helped me to round up the kids and send them home and then accompanied me to where the injured men were. Before I entered, I turned to Yue.

"Sokka will be fine; he's a natural born leader."

"You're worrying over my emotions, when you're fiancé is on the battlefield himself. When are you going to stop being so selfless; it's okay to worry over yourself sometimes, too, you know."

Her eyes, so blue that they are almost white, shine with a look of sympathy for me, but I know that behind all of the sympathy is fear. Fear that her husband, my brother, won't come back from battle. Fear that she will be alone once again (and at her age, one year my senior, it's considered taboo to be unwedded). Fear that when her unconceived child comes into life, she will have to raise without a father. Before the tears that are forming can fall, Yue blinks and rushes away; since she is married, she is not considered a maiden and has to set up her home for Sokka when he comes back. She is to make their tent as comfortable as possible for her husband and afterwards, she is to go around to all the tents to check on the elders. If she had children, she would stay inside and watch over them to make sure they didn't go running about.

I, on the other hand, am to care for all the wounded warriors that somehow make it back to the territory. If I had my way, I would be out there fighting and not here. As much as I love helping people, and I do seem to have a knack for it, I would rather be helping my entire tribe by fighting for our safety.

The first battle I remember had been a couple of days after the winter solstice, which just happens to be around my birthday; I had just turned ten. Seeing all the adults rushing around had terrified me at the time and I had just wanted to find my family. I started running around to, pushing and forcing my way through the crowds, trying to find someone, anyone. I had finally stumbled upon Tatkret, who was twelve (the same age as my brother), and she seemed to be the first person to notice that the princess was running around freely. At that time Tatkret was only a family friend, given her age, but two years later, when the two of them were fourteen, she and Sokka got engaged.

Tatkret, not knowing much more than me about the situation, quickly led me to where my father had been. He was giving orders to the men as they strapped on the pelts and weapons, we could thank the Kingdom of Kuei for introducing newly developed metal weapons. Tatkret had stopped at the back of the room, knowing better than to get in the way, but I had surged forward. I was so relieved to see someone from my family and I needed to touch him. I ran into his legs, and wrapped myself as tightly as I could around him and in doing this I had earned myself more than my share of wide-eyed glances. Tears had started pouring from my eyes as my father pushed me away and knelt in front of me.

"Katara, what are you doing here? Where is Kya? Sokka?" His questions came out at rapid-fire speed and it only made me more flustered. Seeing that I wasn't answering, he looked around and seemed to spot Tatkret, "Tatkret, what are you doing here?"

"I'm sorry Chief Hakoda, but Princess Katara was running around wild outside and this was the closest place and I didn't know what to do," she bowed her head in respect and submission.

"I see, do you know where Kya and Sokka are?"

"No, sir."

"Bato, please escort your daughter home, I'll see to Katara. Men, move out, these foreigners don't know who they picked a fight with."

There were shouts and exclamations at the last line from the warriors. Before I could cover my ears, I was yanked into the arms of my father who took off in a sprint to our home. I was being jostled and his grip was almost bruising and when I made a sound of protest I got nothing in return. Deciding it was better to stay quiet, I stilled in his arms and road it out.

We reached the tent in record time and my father deposited me in my mother's arms. My mom was in tears and was mumbling things that didn't make any sense to me. Sokka came rushing out and started berating me for not coming home when I was supposed to. My father started berating Sokka for not knowing where I was and taking me home. Then when my father started walking away and talking about going to defend our territory, I started screaming. My whole family looked on at me as if I were crazy.

"Katara what's wrong? Hakoda, is she sick?" My mother's hand moved across my tear streaked face, checking for a fever.

"No, no, I don't think so," father comes back to me, grabs my chin and stares intently into my eyes. "No, she doesn't look sick."

"Stop, no, I want to defend, too."

"What?" Mother.

"Our tribe, I want to defend it." Me.

"Don't be silly Katara." Father.

"I'm not being silly." Me.

"Kya, take them both inside and explain it to her please, I've already wasted enough time." Father.

My mother ushers Sokka inside, and carries me. She carefully sits me down on the pelt covered floor. Sokka sits beside me sling-shot, a gift from Lord Iroh, in hand, I hate the thing, and he takes it _everywhere_. Mother sits in front of us and looks at me with the most nurturing look I've ever seen.

"Katara, you can't fight."

I give her what ought to be the most indignant look she's ever seen, "Yes I can."

"No, sweetheart you can't."

"Why not?"

"Well, for starters you're a _girl_."

"Sokka, did I ask for your input?" Mother sets her gaze on him and he suddenly finds his lap appealing.

"No, ma'am."

"Hm, thought so. Why not start cleaning up, huh?"

"But-"

" _Sokka_."

"Yes, ma'am," Sokka gets up and moves to clean and I look back at my mother.

"Is it true?"

"What sweetheart?"

"That I can't fight because I'm a girl."

"Well, kind of, yes."

"That's a stupid rule."

"Well, if you can grow up and prove that you are a good enough fighter, you may be able to fight later."

"What are the other reasons?"

"You're too young. Even Sokka can't fight and he's two years your senior."

I assumed 'your senior' meant 'older than you' and moved on, "What else? If I was old enough and good enough a fighter, what else would stop me from fighting?"

My mother went red for a minute, "If you were pregnant."

"Then I won't have kids."

"Katara, it's your duty, not only as a woman but as the princess, to have successors."

"But I want to fight."

"Yes, but you can't if you have children."

"Then why does dad fight? Why does Bato fight? They have children, so they shouldn't be allowed to fight!"

"These rules only apply to females Katara."

"Well that's stupid!"

"Katara, I understand that, but-"

"MOM! Where does the porcelain from King Kuei go?" Mother looked scared for a moment before she stood and ran towards Sokka. I followed and watched as mother carefully took the plate from my brother and placed it with the others just like it.

That was the last memory of my mother. She had wandered outside later that night to go to Gran Gran's tent to check up on her and neither Sokka or I saw her again. The next day, Gran Gran had come to watch us and hadn't said anything when we asked where our mom was. When my dad came home, Gran Gran left with a hug to each of us and a whispered conversation to my father. He told us that night, with tear filled eyes, that we would never see our mother again. He told me that she was dead and gave me her betrothal necklace. He told Sokka that she had been raped and viciously murdered by the foreign attackers of our tribe; I only know these things because Sokka finally caved and told me when I had turned twelve.

Sokka was given a boomerang that night. It had been picked up on the tribe leaders last trip to the Kingdom of Kuei and my father was going to give it to Sokka the day they got back, but my mother wanted to wait until his birthday. It somehow took the place of the stupid sling-shot. Since that incident, I had promised myself that I would one day be able to fight.

My fighting skills are great according to Sokka. I train with him, Hahn, and my father whenever I can, but the only person who gives me any kind of feedback is Sokka. Hahn hates sparing with me, mostly because he ends up on his back due to the lack of trying. Father is just getting older I believe so Sokka is the only one who is actually a challenge to beat. If I'm being honest, I've only beaten him twice and that was because he had pulled all-nighters with Yue.

I snapped myself out of my thoughts and started rushing around preparing medicines for the wounded and getting the bandages ready. There were only two men here at the moment so there was no real hurry. Well, unless you were caring for the injured, then you were running wild, trying to heal them as best as you could before any infections start to set in.

When I've done everything I can possibly think of doing, I sit on a pelt and wait. It's the only thing there is to do at the moment. Minutes later, Pukiq, a girl who I grew up with sits down in front of me.

"Crazy right?" She asks, moving to sit crisscrossed.

"What do you mean?"

"The Sozin Kingdom attacking and after all this time, too." She shakes her head and places a hand on her neck where a pretty, translucent stone sits engraved with the symbol meaning smart. Pukiq had run to me the day she received it and pointedly made it clear that her name had also meant smart.

"I believe that it was inevitable." Pukiq looks at me with shock, "What did you expect? Everyone knows that Prince Ozai would have ruined the world if he had taken over. We also know that he was the one that poisoned Lord Iroh. Then there's also the fact that everyone in the Sozin Kingdom seems to ignore that fact so Ozai proceeds to live in the palace with the royal family. For all we know, he has a greater influence over Lord Lu Ten than we had hoped for and now he's finally gotten them to take action against us."

"How far have you thought this out?"

"Up to the point where the entire population is wiped out and Ozai no longer has anyone to rule over."

"Well, okay then," Pukiq looks a little unsettled, but after a moment seems fine, "You know, you've always been a dreamer Katara."

I must look confused, "Huh, what do you mean?"

"I mean, you are the only girl I've met who wants to go out and fight. You're also the only one who subjects her fiancé to wrestling with her. When we were about seven, I think, you were the one who introduced us to sledding. Then when we were thirteen, you took the blame when Yakone broke his arm because you had just wanted him to know what it was like to fly."

"I pushed him off the cliff."

"There was water below."

"Yeah, but I had really just wanted to push him. He was being such a baby about wanting to go in the water but not wanting to jump."

"You told him that it felt like flying."

"Well, yeah, but that was because I thought that it might make him jump."

"So, you…you actually pushed him out of contempt?"

I squirmed uncomfortably, "Well, yeah, I guess I did." Pukiq stares at me with awe for a moment before we are interrupted.

Five men waddle into the infirmary, each hanging to another. They all have their separate injuries, but the man in the middle seems to be the worst off. I quickly rush to over to assess injuries. The men on that are outer-most have less severe injuries, one or two deep cuts and a couple of scratches. The men beside them have a harder time walking, one has been stabbed in the stomach and is probably bleeding internally, the other has multiple stab wounds to one side of his body and a large bruise on the side of his head and will most likely suffer head trauma. The man in the middle though, he really terrifies me. He's bleeding from what looks like every pore on his body; he has a knife still lodged into his thigh and what looks to be a broken arm and leg. The men are distributed to different pelts and each one has about five women surrounding them, the eldest women screaming demands of bandages and medicines.

It isn't until all the men have been healed except for the one in the middle that I realize who he is. I almost puke and clutch Pukiq like she's my lifeline.

 _No_.

"Oh, Katara."

 _No. No, no_.

"I'm so sorry, Katara."

 _NO!_

The older women tell Pukiq to take me outside they don't want me to have to see what's happening. I want her to stay, I want to scream and cry, but she has to leave. She has to go back. I don't know how much time passes, but I can see more men coming when Pukiq comes out to get me.

"He wants to see you." I've never ran so fast in my life, when I reach his bed, I cling to him for dear life.

"You idiot, never do that again."

I expect him to laugh in reply but he just looks at me sadly, "Katara."

"What, what happened? Please tell me dad is okay."

"…"

"Sokka, you have to tell me dad is okay," I'm pleading now.

"Yeah, dad is okay."

"Thank the gods."

"But Katara-"

"No, no 'but's you're fine and dad is-"

"Katara, Hahn is dead."

 _No, not Hahn_.


	3. Chapter 2: Zuko

p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"Chapter 2: Zuko/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Why can't I go?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Because Azula, if you go, your face would scare away all of the animals. Besides aren't girls supposed to, I don't know, hate killing things," I pause, "Oh, but then again, you're not much of a girl are you?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Not funny, Zuzu; I'm as much a girl as Mai and you've seen how much of a girl she can be haven't you?" Azula smirks at her innuendo, assuming it will fluster me, but I only smirk back and wink./p  
p class="MsoNormal""You don't know the half of it sister."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Oh, ew, Zuko," her nose scrunches and she stomps away./p  
p class="MsoNormal""You are the one who asked!" I laugh at her and jog to the entrance of the palace, where Lu Ten is having the troop meet./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Zuko, you have finally decided to join us!" Lu Ten exclaims while clapping me on the back. The generals and nobles around us laugh and a chuckle rises out of me, too./p  
p class="MsoNormal""You do not understand how difficult Azula can be."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lu Ten gives me an odd look before whispering in my ear, "Zuko, you do know she is your sister, correct?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I glare at Lu Ten before punching his arm, "You, sir, are a disgusting man. Why would I have anything other than familial relations with my sister?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Ah, Zuko, don't be a sourpuss. It was only a joke." I huff and roll my eyes and Lu Ten laughs, "At least your attitude is better than Azula's. Honestly, though, where did you two get it from? It couldn't have been that ray of sunshine you call a mother."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Obviously I got it from my father Lu Ten and my mother isn't always a ray of sunshine."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Well until I see it, I won't believe that Princess Aki is any less than the sun itself. Anyway, it is about time we head out, right men?" A series of shouts and exclamations follow and the group moves outside to load up on horses and wagons./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Once settled into a wagon of our own Lu Ten starts another conversation, "So, why was Azula holding you up anyway?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I laugh, "Why doesn't Azula hold me up?" That gets a laugh out of him, "No, but she wanted to come and I said no."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""You said no, that's it? I don't believe you."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""I may have insulted her a bit."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lu Ten rolled his eyes, "Explain."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Okay, well, I told her that her face would scare off all the animals." Lu Ten looks at me, knowing that there is more, "Then I said that girls were supposed to hate killing things."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lu Ten gave me a disapproving look, "I know that's not all of it. Fess up, Prince."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I smirked, "Then I told her that she was not a girl. To which she responded with saying that she was as much a girl as Mai and I knew how much of a girl Mai could be."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lu Ten smirks and leans forward, "And? Do you know how much of a girl Lady Mai can be?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I feel a blush shoot across my cheeks and smile of pride take place on my lips, "If I said that I did not?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Then you are a fool for not seeing the way she fancies you."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""If I said that I did?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lu Ten's smile falls and he glares, "Then you are a fool if you break her heart and Lord Ukano takes it out on me."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"My smile falls and I look back into his eyes, "If I break her heart and she takes it out on me, what then?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lu Ten smiles then, "You have entered manhood then my dearest baby cousin."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I frown, "Really, Lu Ten, 'embaby/em'?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"He laughs, well actually more cackles, "You are right, you are a man now; and what better way to celebrate it than to go hunting?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Yes, I only wish my father saw it like you do."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""What did he say?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Oh, you know, the usual lectures; 'don't have too much fun', 'don't get her pregnant', and my personal favorite, 'if only you were more like Azula'."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lu Ten sighs, "I swear, that man," he stops himself and glances at me, "never mind."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I lean back in my seat, oh if only Ozai could see my posture now, "The one that I really don't understand is the Azula one. I just don't get it; I have mastered sword fighting, I'm skilled in hand-to-hand combat, and a decent archer. I have beaten you more times than I can count. Every time I ask Azula to spar with me, she refuses; yet, that seems like the only option to prove myself to him," I close my eyes and get rid of my thoughts, "Forget it. Where are we going anyway?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Just on the border of the Inuit territory; it is summer now, so there won't be much snow, probably none at all. It will take a few hours to get there so we can rest."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I'm sitting up straight now, "Rest? Now that I know we are going there how can I rest?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""What do you mean Zuko?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Think about it. My father has taught me all about those barbarians; Ozai despises them. Perhaps if I can successfully win a battle against the Inuit Tribe, my father will accept-"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Enough, Zuko." Lu Ten's eyes get fixated on me with a harsh glare./p  
p class="MsoNormal""But Lu Ten-"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""No, stop. I am the ruler of the Sozin Kingdom Zuko, my father worked hard for it to become what it is and he died for it; he drove himself sick bringing the people together in peace. If you cannot accept the fact that we are not going to fight than you can start walking back to the palace."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Just listen to me-"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""You heard me Prince Zuko."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"That was enough to shut me up, "I apologize for my words, Lord Lu Ten." You know he's serious when he uses honorifics./p  
p class="MsoNormal"He sighs and leans back into his seat, eyes closed, "Apology accepted."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lu Ten was right; the ride did take a long time. After our argument, Lu Ten had quickly fallen asleep. While it took me a bit longer, I too fell asleep at some point. General Ryuu woke us up when we arrived and handed Lu Ten a spear and I a bow. I got out of the wagon and went to gather arrows./p  
p class="MsoNormal""It truly is beautiful here, is it not Prince Zuko?" Ryuu asks, gliding next to me alongside Lord Osamu, a stingy man who still lives by the old ways of the Sozin Kingdom./p  
p class="MsoNormal"I take a look around and notice that the land is much more open and stretched than I had imagined it would be, "Yes, I guess it is. The Inuit people are lucky to live on such lands." Lord Osamu does not look pleased in the slightest at these words./p  
p class="MsoNormal"A grimace sets on his face, "Are you one of those peace loving characters we have in the Kingdom? I would have thought your father raised you better."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I tilt my head and glare at him, "Are making an accusation that I have an unfit father? That is treasonous you know?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"General Ryuu steps between us, "Come now, Prince Zuko I am sure that Lord Osamu meant no disgrace to the Royal Family. Lord Osamu, I'm sure that Prince Zuko's beliefs are just as sound as your beliefs."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Yes, of course General Ryuu; my apologies if I have offended you or the Royal Family in any way Prince Zuko," Lord Osamu gives a bow, grimace still set in place./p  
p class="MsoNormal"I hum in acceptance, "Apology accepted, but keep in mind Lord Osamu that when you disgrace the Royal Family, you are in turn disgracing your kingdom."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Of course, Prince Zuko."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Lovely, I will be taking my leave now to check up on Lord Lu Ten, excuse me." General Ryuu gives a bow and smile before jogging off in the direction he came from./p  
p class="MsoNormal""And before you go making assumptions, Lord Osamu you should know that my father did teach me better. The Inuits are barbarians and should be dealt with accordingly as should the people of the Kingdom of Kuei."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"A pleased smirk makes an appearance on the man's wrinkling face, "These words are sure to make anyone who lives by Lord Sozin's rule tremendously happy, Prince Zuko. If I were to be frank, I would tell you that your father should have taken the position as head of the Royal Family after Lord Iroh's demise. Just watching as that hooligan Lu Ten mocks his great-grandfather's hard work disgusts me, but it all started with Iroh. Men who are too weak to take control and become the most powerful rulers are not men who should be ruling the Sozin Kingdom; keep that in mind Prince Zuko."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Osamu walks, well more waddles because of the heavy armor and his age combined, away leaving me to ponder his intentions. In the end, I brush it off as meaningless old man babblings. I finish strapping everything to my person and make to mount my horse when Lu Ten, already mounted, trots his horse next to mine./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Zuko, I want to apologize for coming off so harsh earlier, but you don't understand how difficult it is to try and get the people of the Sozin Kingdom to understand that the world can live in peace; and by the sounds of it, Ozai is not helping the situation in the slightest."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I angrily get on the horse, which shifts uncomfortably at the sudden weight placed on its back, "I will agree that Ozai is not the nicest person and that he may not always have the best intentions, but I believe in what he taught Azula and I growing up. The Inuits have dirty skin, they have no currency, instead relying on trade of products, and their hierarchy is a joke in itself."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Zuko, please."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""No, I mean, the chief is head of the tribe, so he should be treated like royalty, with food and wine and women falling to his feet. Instead, he is treated like any other male in the tribe. The wife and children of the chief have titles as well, but yet again are treated as any other person. With that kind of system, there is no way to tell who is really in charge."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""You are wrong Zuko. I do not know what Ozai has taught you, but that is no longer how things are in the Inuit Tribe. Chief Hakoda can make all the decisions by himself without council if he so pleased, but instead he chose to have a close house of about thirteen council members, men and women, who he considers to be the smartest and most elite of the tribe. The duties of the late Chieftess Kya were passed down to her daughter, Princess Katara, when she turned fourteen after her grandmother got to be too old to carry the burden. Prince Sokka has been training to become Chief since he turned ten./p  
p class="MsoNormal""They have both been in arranged marriages since birth to make sure that the tribe would have promising lineage. This tribe is more than barbarians who do not think Zuko. They are a proud people with strong traditions. They support each other as a family; when one person mourns, the entire tribe mourns. They are so far ahead of the Sozin Kingdom and the Kingdom of Kuei that it is astounding."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""It sounds like they are centuries behind, Lu Ten."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"He gives me a saddened look, "If that is how you feel Prince Zuko," Lu Ten turns away from me and raises an arm to the sky, "Let us ride and hunt well, men!" Shouts of encouragement arose from within the small group and we raced to find our prey./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Only, there did not seem to be much prey. We were getting deeper into the Inuit lands by the minute trying to find anything at this point. It had been at least two hours with no sign of anything. For such a fun sport, today was kind of boring. That is, until we heard movement./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Everyone paused; this was it, the moment we had been waiting for. There had not been a lot of foliage on the outskirts of the territory, but being so deep into the lands, there was a change in scenery and it seemed like the only thing here were trees and shrubs so the prey had lots of coverage at this point. One man was sent to silently investigate the noises and he came back he reported to Lu Ten. Lord Osamu, who had been conveniently placed between Lu Ten and myself and that self-satisfied smirk back on his face./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Prince Zuko," he whispered, "it seems that there are barbarians out hunting as well, whatever would you do if you saw one?" I stopped to think./p  
p class="MsoNormal"emWhat would I do?/em/p  
p class="MsoNormal"If I hunted down an Inuit, Lu Ten would get angry, but there is a chance that my father would be happy. However, there is also the fact that if I hunted down a man of the Inuit Tribe, the Tribe would then turn and hunt us, but we could take them easily. At least we should be able to they are not as advanced as us, no matter what Lu Ten may think./p  
p class="MsoNormal""I would cut him down without a second thought, Lord Osamu."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Well, what luck, here comes three of them now." I watch as three Inuit men walk out of the woods with an air of pride larger than any man from the Kingdom I have met and it irks me to my core, before they get five feet from the trees, I take aim and fire an arrow. There are shouts, many from Lu Ten and the two Inuits beside the one I shot down. I study the man as he falls, he has shoulder length black hair that could rival my own, broad shoulders and a slender physique, short and sturdy. His blue eyes are open as he hits the ground, still and dead in his own puddle of blood./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Zuko, what the hell?" Lu Ten has rushed to the side of the Inuit man and checks for a pulse, but there is none, I would know. The other two tribesmen had run of, howling, literally howling like wolves. There are more howls and then what sounds like a horn and I can hear the sounds of running feet. Lu Ten shoots up from his spot and charges at me, before I can move, he has pulled me from the saddle and pinned me to the ground. I think my head is bleeding from the force and my sight goes black for a minute. When I am able to see again, I figure my hearing is gone too because Lu Ten's lips are moving, but there is no sound. But then it starts out of nowhere./p  
p class="MsoNormal""You idiot, do you know what you have just done? That was Princess Katara's fiancée you bloody bigot! I should have you killed for that! You have just started a war, you better pray to all gods that I can talk a way out of this one you chauvinist!"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"In the midst of all the shouting, the men did not notice the approaching warriors. An arrow easily pierced through Lu Ten's armor. I was up in an instant, I carried Lu Ten into cover, ripped out the arrow (which had barely pierced through the skin), and wound a bandage around his torso./p  
p class="MsoNormal""You idiot, Zuko, look what you have done."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""I am sorry that you got hurt Lu Ten, but I do not regret my actions. I intend to win this fight with as little casualties as possible. I will show my father that I am strong."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Why do you feel as though you need to prove yourself to him? He is nothing but a murderer Zuko, you should not look up to such a man."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""I do not look up to him, if anything I despise him. But he mocks my integrity and my honor after I have proved time and time again to him that I deserve his approval. I will be taking this battle for myself. Now get on a horse and send for recruits."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I rush away from Lu Ten and into the battle without a second thought. There is more bloodshed than I had imagined on both sides. Hours pass by with no men sent from the Kingdom and I begin to worry about Lu Ten. I'm in the midst of a one-on-one sword fight with an older male and we both have taken cuts, but no deep wounds. It seems almost endless until a man who appears to be in charge, with all the warriors almost surrounding him in an almost protective way, moves to stand in place of the man I am currently fighting./p  
p class="MsoNormal"At his stance all other fighting seems to cease, "I am Chief Hakoda of the Inuit Tribe. You, emPrince Zuko/em," the way he says my name is obviously an insult, "have maimed my son and killed my son-in-law. In turn of these actions, you have broken the hearts' of both my daughter and daughter-in-law. So, I ask you to put a stop to your men's fighting and instead go against me; no weapons, no assistance. If you win, you may take any prize you want, if you lose, you will take your loss and promise to never attack the Inuit Tribe again."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"His accent is heavy almost to the point of not being able to understand him, "This is not a fight to the death then?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""No, I do not wish for there to be any more death; though, execution would normally be the penalty for harming the royal family where you're from, correct?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""You are right in a sense, the punishment depends on the person and how they harmed the family. In a situation like this execution would not be the answer."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""I see," the man stares at me for a silent minute, "do you agree to the terms of this deal Price Zuko?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"There was a gleam in his eyes, almost taunting, disparaging. I raise my chin, looking down my nose at him in defiance, "Yes," I tighten my grip on the sword and bring it up to meet my left hand, "I accept your deal."/p 


End file.
